For those of you who care about the idea of organic, we have searched high and low to find these real organic teas, which also pass our requirements for taste and authenticity.
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GABA Bouquet, a special white tea
Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Neutral-Cool Energy, Organic teas, Taiwan, Tea, White teasA very rare white tea
Mr Yu rarely wears shoes and walks in his little tea fields barefooted. He loves the contact with the soil that he keeps so naturally fertile, and uncontaminated. So much so that we smell the sweetness walking into his garden. He brews his own fertilisers and devises various ways of natural pest control. He is so into natural farming that a national university has setup quite a few joint projects with him. He totally worships Nature but his hobby is mechanical engineering. He proudly showed me the GABA deoxygenation tank that he modified and explained to me how it is better in processing the tea. Tea Hong’s GABA Bouquet is an invention by him. I have yet to find another tea with this kind of fruity bouquet, smoothness and even a good umami tone. He tried quite a few times before arriving at this distinctive taste quality. This is a rare batch and we can only restock when everything will work the same in the next production. It’s all dependent on Nature after all. Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
North Peak, deep baked Taiwan oolong
Fuller Bodies, Lighter Aromas, Neutral-Warm Energy, Oolongs, Organic teas, Taiwan, TeaA Wuyi reborn in Taiwan
In Taiwan, besides the famous tea mountain of Dong Ding (Cold Peak), there are actually many other areas where the horticultural conditions are good for finer tea production. Such as the Bei Shan (i.e. North Peak) area that is has an 1,100m altitude and near the centre of the whole Taiwan Island, in Nantou County. The Tsai family does not have the resources to get an international organic certification, but they run the farm according to organic practices with the help of the local university, much like Master Yu who makes our GABA teas. Tea Hong’s North Peak is an oolong optimally deep baked for aroma and caramelisation. It is produced by the Tsai family using a Wuyi Shuixian cultivar that is localised and quite different from any Wuyi oolongs from Wuyi. You will find it softer and slightly sweeter. Interestingly, that is very much a Taiwan style, gentler in every way. Net weight: 70 g (2.5 oz) in Kraft-alu pillow pack -
Royal Black, classic black tea from the Himalayas
Black teas, Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Nepal, the Himalayas, Neutral-Warm Energy, Organic teas, TeaAn Easy and Versatile Fine Tea
Royal Black is one of those teas that is good as is even when strongly brewed, and fantastic with added milk, or honey and lemon for that matter. It holds its finesse in the casual handling of daily use. The deeper oxidation and baking executed onto these selectively slightly larger size young leaves give the tea a sweeter, fruitier and more straightforward taste profile that makes it a comforting sip. Handpicked in Spring from the slope of the Himalayas in Dhankuta, Nepal, and processed with the mastery of traditional black tea, this certified organic product distinguishes itself from most other organic teas available out there with a classic black tea taste that is rare in those other products. Net weight: 50 g (1.8 oz) in Kraft-alu pillow -
Moon Drops Himalayas, deep oxidation Nepali white tea
Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Nepal, the Himalayas, Neutral-Cool Energy, Organic teas, Tea, White teasWhen a Taiwanese marries a Japanese in Nepal
The tougher terroir of the Himalayas usually gives a more rugged characteristic to the yield. Yet the ingenious farmer of Tea Hong's Moon Drop Himalayas has employed the creamy Jinxuan ( 金萱 ) cultivar from Taiwan and the umami Yabukita ( やぶきた ) from Japan to produce this tea. Their softer nature most definitely tones down the harsher growing environment to give this tea an extraordinarily round body, accompanied with a sweetness and bouquet that one can hardly find in any other South Asian productions. An extra step of rolling is added to the end of the white tea withering process to develop more depth in the taste profile. This is indeed an unusual gem of white tea. However, maintaining the East Asian tea plants in the Himalayas is not an easy job and getting a good yield from them is even more demanding. We have been following this tea for almost a decade before deciding to carry it. A fine batch as this one on offer is rare. Net weight: 50 g (1.8 oz) in Kraft-alu packRated 5.00 out of 5 -
Blue Shiiba, Nepali semi-oolong
Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Nepal, the Himalayas, Neutral-Cool Energy, Oolongs, Organic teas, TeaKyushu wild tea reincarnates as an oolong in the Himalayas
Our Nepali farmer has taken a native wild tea plant from the island of Kyushu, Japan, to try propagating it in the Himalayas. The distinctly different terroir has not been kind to the small leaves so not every harvest gives you a satisfying result. The processing technique has been continuously evolving in the past decade to arrive at what we think is a wonderful manifestation of this unique tea cultivar. A batch as this on offer is rare. To us, it embraces the tea’s heritage as a wok roasted green tea, yet attaining a bouquet found only in fine Taiwan oolongs like that of Wenshan Paochong, while unmistakably carrying the complex tones and finishes afforded by the unique environment on this altitude on the roof of the Earth. Net weight: 50 g (1.8 oz) in Kraft-alu packRated 5.00 out of 5 -
Imperial Topaz, matured Nepal hand-rolled black tea
Black teas, Floral Aromas, Milder Tastes, Nepal, the Himalayas, Neutral Energy, Organic teas, TeaHand-rolled Himalayan Tips:
Although tea from this part of the world has not been best known for smoothness, there can be exceptions provided that there is the proper knowledge and experience. Together with the work of Nature. Imperial Topaz is such a tea. Hand-rolled and masterfully processed for a soft and round profile yet rich with the distinctive mineral accents representative of the region, the bright orange infusion delivers what is best from the Himalayas coupled with the modesty and gentleness of a Chinese black. Imperial Topaz is not only a gem of Nepali tea, but also an example of what can be achieved when we tea people share and work together across boundaries. Net weight: 50 g (1.8 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
Mini Peony, matured white tea
Cold Energy, Huangshan & Anhui, Lighter Aromas, Milder Tastes, Organic teas, Tea, White teasOrganic Golden White Tea
All classic tastes today had once been novel. In the category of white tea, there is much room for developing a fuller spectrum of fine tastes. Mini Peony is Tea Hong’s answer for a different tasting alternative to the classic White Peonies. Processed from a new cultivar, and grown organically in the scenic mountains in Huangshan, this smaller size version of white peony has all the goodness of genuine white tea, but delivered in the compact, less hairy orchid shape whole leaves. The gold infusion is characterised with its own distinct sweet milky notes as a fine selection in its own rights. Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in wide Kraft-alu packRated 4.67 out of 5 -
GABA Orange Extra, de-oxygenised oxidation Taiwan oolong
Lighter Aromas, Milder Tastes, Neutral Energy, Oolongs, Organic teas, Taiwan, TeaGamma-Aminobutyric Acid Enriched:
There maybe a few other options of GABA tea out there, but to produce one that is fine tasting as well as organic requires real experience, dedication and stringent process management. Presenting GABA Orange from Nantou, Taiwan. Our answer to those of you wanting naturally formed GABA from a nice tasting oolong, with that touch of orange wonderfully developed in the tealeaves themselves. Nature always has surprises for us. We just have to work with it to make it happen. ( What is GABA? ) Net weight: 70 g (2.5 oz) in Kraft-alu pillowRated 4.75 out of 5 -
Himalayan Finest Flowery, orthodox black tea
Black teas, Nepal, the Himalayas, Neutral Energy, Organic teas, Stronger Tastes, TeaNepali Finest Orthodox:
If black tea from China is too soft for your taste, perhaps this is a good option. While having same level of pleasant flowery character, Himalayan Finest Flowery has a lot more sharpness and strength. Our garden, 1800m above the Dhankuta region, lends a pristine growth environment for the tea. The extreme difference between day and night, winter and spring, the dry air and unique minerals in the soil give a distinctive taste profile to this light color black tea. EU and USDA certified organic. Net weight: 80 g (2.8oz) in Kraft-alu packRated 4.33 out of 5